SCHENECTADY -- It was effusive praise. The senator on stage lauded Andrew Cuomo as "one of the most dynamic and successful governors in the nation." The popular executive returned the favor by calling the lawmaker a "true statesman."

Normal political back-patting, for sure, but from an interesting source: Sen. Hugh Farley, R-Niskayuna. The public exchange of pleasantries, before a packed auditorium of business leaders and other dignitaries assembled for the announcement of the Capital Region Economic Development Council, was the latest evidence of a cozy relationship between Cuomo and Republicans who now control the Senate.

They partnered in the past legislative session to keep an income tax from being renewed in the budget and to cap local property taxes. Outnumbered on the voter rolls and surrounded by Democrats who dominate the Assembly and, currently, all other statewide offices, Senate Republicans go out of their way to emphasize their cooperation with Cuomo, who enjoys stratospheric approval ratings.

They have good reason to do so: His explicit or even tacit support might be the key to their survival at election time.

"He's a Democrat -- certainly we understand that and respect that -- but he has an agenda and we have an agenda, and most of the time we're on the same page," said Sen. Tom Libous, a Binghamton Republican who chairs the conference's campaign operation. "And why would he want to go back to the dysfunction of the Senate Democrats?"

Senate Democrats bristled at that charge. They note Cuomo backed their position in pushing for stronger tenant protection measures (though tenant advocates say the ultimate deal was a fraction of what they wanted) and worked with them to pressure Republicans to support same-sex marriage, which ultimately drew only four GOP votes. Sen. Mike Gianaris, a Queens Democrat who chairs the Democratic Senate Campaign Committee, said he and his members have a "great working relationship" with Cuomo.

But Cuomo's Electric City lovefest wasn't an isolated incident. He exchanged kind words with Sen. John DeFrancisco in Syracuse and Senate Majority Leader Dean Skelos, both Republicans, while announcing the development councils and signing the tax cap bill.

Cuomo has not shared a podium with any Senate Democrat since June, when he stood with 25 members of the Democratic conference supporting same-sex marriage. Cuomo lauded them, but also explicitly praised Sen. Jim Alesi, R-Perinton, who was the first Republican to declare his support for same-sex marriage. And in Schenectady, Cuomo, in front of the region's elites, had this to say of Sen. Roy McDonald, R-Saratoga, another early "yes" vote on the marriage bill: "He is a person of principle and he has guts," Cuomo said.

Sen. Neil Breslin, D-Albany, sat politely in the audience, winning only a perfunctory mention from the governor.

This is a far cry from Gov. Eliot Spitzer, who actively campaigned to help Democrats capture the Senate from Republicans during his 2006 campaign and in subsequent special elections. And it's a long evolution even for Cuomo, who in 2010 endorsed Farley and McDonald's Democratic challengers.

"The governor has and will support Democrats politically, but as he said in his first day in office, there is a time for politics and campaigning, and there is a time for governing," said Cuomo spokesman Josh Vlasto. "Now is a time for governing."

Gianaris agreed. It's very early in the election cycle, and while Republicans hold an early cash advantage over Democrats, they may surge in a presidential year, where turnout among their base is typically higher. Why rock the boat now?

Regardless, Cuomo has to work with the Senate GOP for another year, on another budget and a session's worth of bills.

"It's not surprising that the governor would compliment legislators of either party who have agreed from time to time on issues," Gianaris said. "We look forward to following him, as the leader of our party, through the election season next year."

Bruce Gyory, a political consultant who has advised three governors, said Cuomo was playing both sides of the coin -- working the Republicans, Democrats and the new four-member Independent Democratic Conference as needed. The result has been to "transform the Senate's political instability into a sturdy governing tool."

This allowed Cuomo to play Senate Republicans and Assembly Democrats off each other, while playing the role of Solomonic centrist, thus avoiding the age-old strategy of siblings uniting to attack their pragmatic parent, Gyory noted.

He said it's too early to see where Cuomo will go in the elections. A major indicator will come in legislative redistricting. Senate Republicans are pushing to draw new lines, which will remain in effect for a decade, through a panel they control along with Assembly Democrats.

The current system is widely derided as gerrymandering, and many political aides say district lines could make or break the Senate GOP. Cuomo has maintained he "will veto lines that are not drawn by an independent commission, that are partisan," aligning him with Senate Democrats.

But others question whether he cut a secret deal with the Senate GOP to soften on the issue.

"The governor's a good listener. We have to be good listeners," Libous said. "I'm confident we can work out a very positive, fair redistricting plan that's going to be fair to the people of this state."